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To bring or not to bring on an excursion


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Going on Harmony and booked an RC Excursion to Discovery Bay at our Falmouth Port stop. Wondering if the passports should stay in the stateroom safe or go with us? I know that in the unlikely event that we aren't on the boat when it leaves, RC staff should hand over ID's to the local port, and that we are even more unlikely to miss the boat since it is a RC organized excursion.

Most naysayers to leaving it in the safe say things like "it's a foreign country and I wouldn't trust anyone to get my things in an emergency..." 

The opposing camp would say, "it's more likely your passports will get stolen on an excursion, and you should only need your sea pass card, maybe a drivers license and if you want, take a photocopy of your passport..."

 

I think I'm in the "leave it in the stateroom safe" camp, any thoughts? Also any first hand experience of the Discovery Bay Excursion?

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I take my passport card with me and leave the passport in the safe.  I also have a waterproof pouch that I wear around my  inner waistband so if someone were to steal my belongings, they are going to have to get into my pants to do so.  I can even swim and snorkel with everything on me and it stays dry. 

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There are a bunch of RCBlog Cruising Best Practices and High Recommendations. IMO, at the top of that list ls obtain a passport.  #2 should be take a picture on your phone of the picture page of that passport before you leave on your trip.

That image will be enough to get you out of any type diplomatic trouble a person could get themselves into while they are on a Royal Caribbean excursion. 

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While I have never experience it myself, I have been told that if you are going to miss the ship, the cruise personal will remove your passport from the safe and hand it over to the port authority. 

If my shore excursion is going to include the beach or swimming, I usually only take my driver's license.  Otherwise I take my passport. 

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My first cruise the Caribbean I took my passport, and I believe my wife and young son kept theirs in the safe.  Wouldn't you know, our motorboat excursion hit choppy waves off Dominican Republic as a squall moved through the bay.  Then the outboard engine died.  We were all soaked with seawater.  I almost ruined my passport.  Fortunately, the crew restarted the outboard and we made it to the pier.  Now I always leave my passport on the ship. I do like to use my Passport Card as ID.  In the end, the State Department has everything in the computer, so what I really need in an emergency is a good credit card "just in case".

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I'll kind of split the difference. If on a Royal Caribbean excursion I would just leave passport on ship. They won't leave 50 to 100 to 150 passengers behind, so no need to worry on that front. We've waited 4 extra hours to depart because of late excursions still not back. Now traveling on your own, I would take it. That's what it's for. 

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20 hours ago, Mturk said:

The only time we brought the passport with us was last summer when we went to Israel because it was required to enter. Otherwise I'm in the keep it in the safe camp.

That is a good point. There are countries that are very much "have you passport with you at all times, by law" kinds of places. Definitely good to know which ones those are and follow the laws as needed. 

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3 hours ago, Psycho and Barb said:

Ours stays in the safe unless required for an excursion...Like going into Canada on an Alaska cruise tour.  We do have pictures of ours on our phone but not sure of what good they would be. 

That is a great idea.  I would carry a paper copy of the front page of my passport.  Having a paper copy or a photo will have the embassy as long as your passport # is readable. 

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So I am a newbie to cruising but not to traveling. I have both a passport and a passport card to make life simple and because you just never know when you need an extra form of ID. Being female, pockets suck and I do not like to carry purses because they are just too easy to be stolen. So for ports/traveling I carry my passport card. For clothing I wear a skort that has a rear zip pocket in the small of my back that keeps my credit card and my passport card. It's virtually impossible to pickpocket because a, noone knows its there and b. you have to lift my top, unzip the pocket and unwedge the cards out. Call me paranoid but it works for me. EFHUTTON/AmericanExpress Never travel without it. lol But if I'm in a pinch I have ID and money. 

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